- Title:
- The Collar and the Cavvarach
- Author:
- Annie Douglass Lima
- Release:
- June 15, 2020
- Format:
- Audiobook
- Narrator:
- Joseph Baltz
- Series
- Krillonian Chronicles, Book 1
As I often say, I didn’t read the summary for this book before I requested is a review copy or listened. I bring this up here because I feel like the summary somewhat misrepresents what the story is about. While freeing his sister is Bensen’s biggest motivator, the “people closing in on her” is a very minor aspect of the story.
The world doesn’t seem all that different from the United States, possibly other ‘western’ nations. One of the few changes is the legal slavery. I got the distinct impression the made-up kingdom, currency, etc. were used so it wouldn’t seem too similar to any real nation.
The protagonist, Bensin is completely and utterly determined to get what he wants. The fact that he doesn’t give up, not for anything is a trait that I respect. In a world where he’s the underdog and looked down on for being a slave, Bensin never lets that stop him. He makes a name for himself and means the respect of the people around him.
The book ends on a cliffhanger, much to my annoyance. But it didn’t piss me off as much as other books for two reasons. The first was the awesome preview of book 2, which has me excited to listen to it. The second is because it feels like part 2 and not book 2. If you read a few reviews of this book and it sounds like something you’d enjoy, make sure to get both parts. I’ve noticed there’s a part 3 and a novella, but I’ll see how things go with part 2 before I look into obtaining those.
The martial art of the series ‘cavvara shil’ is pretty well fleshed out. I’ve never heard of it but I was seriously starting to wonder if it was a real sport. The combat is very well done and easy to follow, which is what led to me wondering this.
My only other complaint is Bensin and his sister having green eyes, how it’s made note of in the story. Green eyes are rare as hell and not a single other character’s eye color is mentioned, as far as I can remember. I wouldn’t have taken issue with it, but I’ve been reviewing a LOT of books the last couple of months. Authors always seem to point out characters with green eyes, like we’re something exotic. It’s starting to get annoying. I did a search online and found an article talking about this issue, so it’s not just me imagining things either.
The narrator overall does a great job. My only issues with the audiobook are minor. At one point, the audio repeated the same dialogue twice. Which from previous experiences with Audible narration, has nothing to do with the book’s dialogue. The other 2 are a strange echo, likely due to a poor attempt to overlap the dialogue.
I feel this book is worth a read, I enjoyed it and I’m looking forward to at least listening to part 2.
NOTE: This copy was provided to me free of charge as a digital review copy. The opinions stated in this review are mine and mine alone, I was not paid or requested to give this book a certain rating, suggestion, or approval.